Epson ran a 'buy two get one free' rebate program on their new Exhibition large format media from March through June. I made two purchases that qualified- one in March and one at the beginning of June. Despite numerous phone calls to their rebate center and re-sending documentation already provided, I can't get them to even acknowledge that my claims exist in their system!

Rebates, in general, are kind of a scam, unless they are "instant" rebates. The marketing folks who run these promotions know that a large percentage of people won't take the time to fill them out, and those that do, if they are ignored, will probably not follow through to complain they didn't receive their rebate.I've sent in three rebates on Epson desktop printers over the years. After the first two were never honored, I figured it must be me that was doing something wrong. So, on the last one, I asked my summer intern to fill out one and post it promptly. Never got that rebate check, either.

My rebate submission for some EEF didn't show after some time, so I called and resubmitted the paperwork as instructed, the rebate was honored. Maybe I was just lucky.... I treat rebates like gambling -- don't be more than you can afford to lose.

While I have found this true in some cases, I submitted a printer rebate to Canon around the same time as the first of these Epson ones- was able to do the whole process online, got an email confirmation within a few hours, and had the check in a few weeks. This situation w/ Epson is the worst I've experienced...

I've also made a couple of qualifying Exhibition Canvas purchases - one at the beginning of the promotion, and one near the end of June, and have yet to see anything back. Since you mention it, I do believe that the first one is later than their promised 6-8 weeks...

I'm beginning to think these people are pulling off a total scam- today I got pretty serious w/ them on the phone- was promised a call back this afternoon (for the third time)- it never happened (for the third time)...

Bought an R1900 back in Feb. I got the $200 check no problem. They sent me an email saying they had received the rebate and were processing it. Later they sent me another email saying the check had been mailed. The entire process was painless. Are the rest of you filling out the rebate forms online?

No they are not a scam! Not Epson. Highly reliable and on the up and upIf you follow the instructions , submit all the required paperwork , to the proper address you will be reinbursed. It just takes time, be patient.

I wonder if different rebates might be handled by different sub-contractors?

My experience here is that I submitted proper paperwork and documentation. After hearing nothing for two months, I called and they told me they had no claim from me, so I re-submitted by fax. I asked for email confirmation of receipt and didn't get it, but they confirmed receipt when I called them. I waited another 6 weeks and heard nothing. I called and they said that it had been re-submitted but that's all they knew. After another 3 weeks I called again and they could find no record of my claim- they asked me to re-submit! In the meantime I submitted another claim 8 weeks ago- they said they can find no record of that claim. They promised to call me back yesterday once they'd 'looked into it'. They never called (this is the third time they've said they would contact me and failed to do so).

So far in this thread comments have indicated that rebates on printers have been well managed, but this media promotion has not been....

I'll keep you posted (at this point I'm almost ready to call the Attorney General's office)...

No they are not a scam! Not Epson. Highly reliable and on the up and upIf you follow the instructions , submit all the required paperwork , to the proper address you will be reinbursed. It just takes time, be patient.

Epson rebates are NOT a scam. Occasionally, one of our customers has an issue with a rebate and if we are the selling dealer we get directly involved to make certain that the rebate is paid to the entitled party.

I thought I was the only person with this experience with the Epson paper rebate (not a printer rebate). Don't know if that's comforting or hopeless...

Submitted the rebate form and materials as required via US mail (2 of us verified that we had the correct materials properly completed) in the first part of March.

Called Epson Rebate Center several times but they could not even verify receipt and said it could take more than 4 weeks to show up in their system.

By May 20 when it still had not appeared in their system, I was told to fax the materials which I did. I confirmed their receipt of the fax on May 23 and was told that the material had been "sent down for processing" and that the check would take "a few weeks" to go out.

June 10 follow up call to customer service confirmed that they had located the submittal and we should expect the check in 6 to 8 weeks.

July 5 the second submittal is shown as received on their system, but no status available. Supervisor to call back in 1-3 days to report status

July 7 Supervisor reports receipt has been lost and asks us to re-fax the receipt. I fax all the materials again because I figure it is just so hard not to lose stuff that they might lose something else next time.

July 13 Rebate Center confirms receipt of (re-faxed) receipt and says that usually if something like this happens, they expedite the claim(!) so that I should receive the rebate check in a couple of weeks.

End of July Follow up call to the Rebate Center tells me to expect the check in the middle of August.

I'm concerned by the number of people who have reported having difficulty with this Epson rebate program. Whether this is because Epson is using a new fulfillment service, or for some other reason, I get the impression that this particular rebate program may have serious problems.

Is there anyone who has actually received a rebate pursuant to this particular promotion? (This question is just about the Epson Exhibition Canvas promotion - I hope we can avoid cluttering up this thread with replies about printer rebates, which generally seem to be working). Are the more people who have submitted a claim, and experienced problems?

I've made two claims: the first one on May 6. It's been significantly more than the 8 weeks claimed on the rebate form, and I have yet to receive so much as an acknowledgement of receipt.

After several additional phone calls, I received the following from Timika Gladney at Archway (the fulfillment service that Epson is using for this rebate): "I wanted to inform you that your information has been uploaded to the system. Unfortunately, it has uploaded 3 times. I have deleted two of the checks. You will receive one rebate check in the amount of $145 which was the lowest priced roll of paper you purchased. Once the check prints on Tuesday it then goes through the accounting process. This step takes about two weeks. Once we have the approval to mail your check we will send it to you. This entire process should have the check in your hands by the end of the month. I apologize for the delay and I truly appreciate your patience in handling this matter."

This is for a submittal at the beginning of March! Also, no mention was made of a second claim I submitted at the beginning of June and had also inquired about at the same time. These people (at Archway) seem totally incompetent. The only person that's been the least bit responsive and helpful is Melody, a manager at the Epson rebate center (800) 277-6187)- talking to lower level people there is also a waste of time.

Someone at a higher level at Epson needs to be made aware of the damage these people are causing to their brand...

It's an unfortunate fact that a number of fulfillment houses engage in a deliberate business process of only fulfilling claims made by people who make a very serious effort to collect them. My belief is that this constitutes constructive fraud. I do not believe that it is Seiko Epson's policy to conduct promotions in a fraudulent manner, but I suspect that some of these sleazy outfits attempt to influence the tendering process in ways that Seiko Epson wouldn't approve of at a corporate level, to put it as delicately as I can.

I would still very much like to hear from anyone who has participated in this promotion.Is there anyone who has successfully received a rebate through this promotion?Is there anyone else who has unsuccessfully submitted one or more claims?

I received rebates on two separate purchases and submissions. One was for a purchase of 8x11.5 EEF, one was for a purchase of 17x22 EEF, purchased later. The first one went astray, I had to resubmit after a call, but after resubmitting, I did receive a check. The one for the 17x22 went through without a hitch. I would say you should expect it to take 2 to 3 months to get a check in the normal course of processing based on my experience.

(The kicker is that now B&H is selling EEF with no rebate at the same as the net price after rebate when I bought earlier this year)

It's time that major corporations like Epson stop using fulfillment services whose business practices are predicated on disinformation, delay and denial. These short sighted contract awards are driven by bean counters and cynical math that seeks to maximize the sales lift while minimizing the rebate expense. Customer satisfaction and loyalty that manufacturing and other departments struggle to build is needlessly squandered. Rebate calculations should be based on the positive assumption that all customers who qualify will get their checks in timely fashion. That's how you build a brand.

I hate hearing these stories. Epson if you're listening fix this or you'll end up facing another class action suit.